A South Bay Man Helped Restrain A Rowdy Passenger Aboard A Flight. He Was Honored With A Key To The City

GARDENA, CA — Rayshaun Riley was aboard a Breeze Airways flight from Virginia to Los Angeles on Aug. 13, when authorities say a passenger suddenly started getting rowdy.

The passenger was making sexual comments and shouting racial slurs at a flight attendant before threatening to attack other people aboard the plane, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

That's when Riley, a Gardena resident and security guard at Peary Middle School, stepped in. Video uploaded by KCAL news shows Riley picking up the rowdy passenger off his feet and placing him in a seat.

This, according to authorities, allowed flight attendants to place the man in zip tie restraints while the flight diverted to Colorado. The passenger, identified as 47-year-old David Leroy Carver, meanwhile, is facing charges related to interfering with flight crew members and attendants, according to federal prosecutors.

Unbeknownst to Riley, another passenger recorded his efforts, and the video went viral online, with some referring to the South Bay man as a hero.

"I just acted off instinct, I had no idea it was going to turn this big," Riley said during a Gardena city council meeting Tuesday, where he was honored with a Key to the City. "I feel like every man that's probably in this room would have done the same thing I did. I just happened to be on that airplane."

Gardena Mayor Tasha Cerda commended the security guard for his quick thinking and said that his actions likely saved the lives of the people aboard the plane.

"The key to the city is something that we just don't hand out to anybody," Mayor Cerda said. "In my over 25 years of being involved in the city of Gardena, I've only seen it handed out to two people, and that's for their many, many years of community service."

Peary Middle School's Vice Principal joined Riley Tuesday night at the council meeting, saying that the security guard's actions were just one example of the leadership he exudes each day at work.

"The way that he goes out of his way to serve our school community and serve our students is just immeasurable," Peary Middle School's Vice Principal said. "He's just one of a kind."

Riley said he was "speechless" and never once thought he'd be honored for doing what he thought was the right thing.